CHICAGO — Illinois coach Bret Bielema doesn’t usually rewatch his teams’ games on Saturday nights. He thinks he’s often “a little bit too high or a little bit too low” to start that work.
But alas, he had a 2 1/2 hour bus ride home from Bloomington, Ind., after the Illini’s shocking 63-10 blowout loss to Indiana on Saturday. So he dived into the postmortem via the game film.
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“The worst thing that we can do is ignore it as if it never happened,” Bielema told reporters Monday in Champaign. “So we had to relive it and really understand the process of why.”
Bielema said he could feel it in the locker room Saturday night that his players would be ready to address the loss with the proper urgency. They did that Sunday and already have turned the page to Saturday’s game against No. 21 USC at Gies Memorial Stadium.
Here are three things Bielema said at his Monday news conference as the No. 23 Illini (3-1) try to bounce back:
1. Defensive back Xavier Scott is set for surgery Wednesday.
Bielema said Scott is expected to miss the majority of the season after he undergoes surgery this week, but he left open the possibility of Scott’s return late in the year.
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Scott missed the Indiana game after he landed awkwardly on his right foot/ankle late in the Sept. 13 win over Western Michigan. Scott held his ankle after the play.
Bielema said X-rays initially were negative, but Scott sought specialists’ opinions late last week and will opt for surgery.
The absence is a big blow for the Illinois defense. Scott, a senior and third-year starter, was a first-team All-Big Ten selection last season after he had four interceptions, six pass breakups, a forced fumble, a sack, two tackles for a loss and 49 tackles.
Illinois’ secondary depth took several hits against Indiana. But Bielema kept open the possibility that Matthew Bailey (concussion), Kaleb Patterson (lower body) and Torrie Cox Jr. (stomach) would be back to practice this week.
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Defensive coordinator Aaron Henry told reporters that coaches need to make adjustments when dealing with such absences.
“Making the call sheet a little smaller, tweaking some minor adjustments to how we play certain things, allowing guys to play to their strengths, whether we have an older guy or younger guy go in,” Henry said.
2. The Illini are examining what needs to change to cut down on sacks.
Quarterback Luke Altmyer has been sacked 16 times in four games, including seven against Indiana. The 16 sacks allowed is one off the most in the FBS.
Bielema vowed after the game to find answers for an offensive line that returned five starters this season, saying, “We definitely can’t live this way.” He said Monday they’re looking to shore up some things schematically and better communicate expectations to the players.
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“It’s not just one position,” Bielema said. “The part that I was very strong to our coaches, and our coaches relayed that message: It’s not just the offensive line.
“Our protection involves running backs, tight ends and the quarterback. And to shore up what they’re doing a little bit schematically, but also just the approach and confidence, is going to be the big thing.”
Altmyer, who completed 14 of 22 passes for 146 yards and a touchdown, took some of the blame off the offensive line late Saturday.
“The last thing I want to do is point the finger,” he said. “I didn’t play well. I played with poor eyes, poor fundamentals all day. Credit to Indiana for playing well and flying around, making it difficult for us, but I didn’t help us out in that fashion either.”
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The USC defense has 16 sacks, tied for the most in the country.
3. Illinois counted 20 missed tackles against Indiana.
The Illinois defense is searching for its own answers after giving up 579 yards of offense Saturday, including eight plays of more than 15 yards. Henry said he put the failures on his shoulders for not having the defense prepared to execute.
Missed tackles were prevalent, with Illinois coaches counting 20. That included multiple misses on Omar Cooper Jr.’s 39 yard catch in the first quarter.
“You ain’t going to win a lot of games when you miss that many tackles,” Henry said. “We have to continue to focus on the basic fundamentals that make us a really good defense.
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“There were some play calls that for sure I could have made better calls in better situations. But at the end of the day, it’s about ‘how do you tackle?’”
Now Illinois has to face a USC team that Henry believes has “some of the better skill in the country.”
That includes wide receiver Makai Lemon, who is seventh in the FBS with 109.5 receiving yards per game, and running back Waymond Jordan, who is 10th with 110.8 rushing yards per game. Quarterback Jayden Maiava is eighth with 305.8 passing yards per game.
“A lot of good skill on the outside,” Bielema said. “The challenge is going to be to keep the ball in front of us and stop the big plays from happening defensively.”
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